In terms of design, modern sailing yachts have undergone a development that has a positive effect on both comfort and sailing performance. In a ten-year comparison, the waterlines have become significantly longer, the widths wider and, above all, the sterns have become much wider. The lines of the Grand Soleil 72 Performance are no exception in these respects; they converge aft almost at their widest point. This results in plenty of space in front of the transom for a large tender as well as spacious guest and crew quarters.
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The "Polli tail" of the Grand Soleil 72
Dines Pontoppidan, Grand Soleil dealer at Diamond Yachts in Laboe, calls it the "Polli stern". The dramatic constriction towards the waterline is typical of Matteo Polli's designs. It reduces the wetted surface and thus the resistance, while at the same time the high width in the freeboard increases the dimensional stability. Aft, two starkly different shapes meet: the outline of the deck is similar to a Chianti bottle, while the waterline resembles the graceful bottle of a grappa. However, Polli's bathtub sterns do not have chine edges and do not have twin rudders. Grand Soleil also consults the Italian designer for the smaller performance models. Matteo Polli has become known as a master of adaptation to the ORC formula. His designs have won a string of honours on the regatta courses, most recently the Grand Soleil 44P at the ORC World Championship in Kiel. In addition to his commissioned work for shipyards, he also optimises older yachts for ORC.
From above, the deck looks like a Chianti bottle, at waterline level like a grappa bottle
While the Grand Soleil 80 "Essentia", launched in 2019, was still a one-off made of full carbon fibre, the Grand Soleil 72 is the flagship of the series range. Franco Corazza is the project manager responsible for Grand Soleil's maxi line. The former sailing professional represented X-Yachts in Italy for 15 years before co-founding Italia Yachts and being asked by Grand Soleil in July 2020 to develop boats from 60 to 80 feet. "The 72 is our first baby," says Corazza on board the first "PantaRei". Massimo Gino from Nauta Design was also on board. The designer remembers how it came about: "During the Genoa Boat Show, Franco and I looked at the 44, which looks very sexy. We thought about how we could transfer these sporty hull lines to 72 feet."
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The Grand Soleil 72 is sporty and aggressive
The brief for Gino and his Milan-based design team was: sporty and aggressive, yet elegant at the same time. Grand Soleil calls it an "Italian aesthetic". The attractiveness referred to by Massimo Gino is undoubtedly reflected in the ultra-flat superstructure. The coachroof, which Nauta Design has never before designed in this way, merges into a wide coaming, which is dotted with three skylights and ends in a comfortable seating position for the helmsman. The view out of the side window remains unobstructed, as the rail of the minimally overlapping and hydraulically furled genoa is mounted on the superstructure next to the
Carbon mast sits. The sheet disappears into a tube that also serves as a tether. The sail wardrobe is completed by a self-tacking jib and a Code Zero. The cruising aspirations of the "PantaRei" owners are expressed in the rod rig, aluminium boom, the absence of a traveller and a 3.70 metre long fixed keel, behind which the 3.20 metre long solo rudder blade is positioned. A telescopic keel or a fixed version with a draught of just 2.60 metres are optionally available.
"Every 72 has a different configuration," explains Franco Corazza. Although "PantaRei" was created as a performance version of the 72, this applies more to the fuselage.
Grand Soleil manufactures the 72 as a GRP sandwich construction with CFRP reinforcements in the new shipyard in Fano
Corazza's motto is: "Why go cruising slowly with a heavy boat when you can go light and fast?"
Manufactured in a new shipyard
With a displacement of 31 tonnes, the 72 is one of the lighter series representatives in the maxi class. It is not built at the headquarters in Forlì; Grand Soleil manufactures all models from 65 feet in the new shipyard in Fano. In Maurizio Testuzzas Adriasail, an existing composite company with a first-class reputation was acquired. On the Adriatic coast, the maxis are laminated from GRP sandwich using a vacuum infusion process with vinyl ester epoxy resin and according to structural calculations by Marco Lostuzzi. In June 2021, the first fibreglass layers were added to the 72nd generation mould.
Carbon is also used, reports Grand Soleil dealer Dines Pontoppidan: "The structure and hull are reinforced with unidirectional carbon fibre. In addition, all bulkheads are made of composite and are laminated to both the hull and deck to ensure a particularly rigid construction." Matteo Polli names an advantage of the GRP hull: "With a pure carbon fibre construction, we would have had to pay more attention to noise emissions. This gives us a good compromise between weight and rigidity."
The Grand Soleil 72 below deck
Below deck, there is a four-cabin layout, including a crew quarter aft, which can be moved to the forepeak, leaving space for additional guest areas. The owner's cabin is located in the foredeck, with a guest cabin to port. Behind this, Nauta Design has positioned the saloon with dining table and the galley. "PantaRei" is classically finished in teak, which contrasts with cream-coloured fabrics on the walls and upholstery. There are few layout options, says project manager Franco Corazza: "We are not moving the basic bulkheads." However, the decors are interchangeable and different wood veneers are available. Construction number two was launched as a deckhouse variant in Fano, although the term is only partially accurate. The shipyard term Long Cruise (LC) fits much better. In the LC version, the saloon is one level higher, but the superstructure is characteristically flat and ends in front of the mast. The third 72 was again ordered in the Performance version. Franco Corazza informs us that all three owners have not upgraded from their own portfolio, but due to the wide range of equipment, he is not disclosing any starting prices.
The exterior brief to Nauta was: sporty, aggressive and elegant at the same time
However, he reveals the value of "PantaRei": it amounts to a good three million euros. Four deliveries are made per year and model, including the new 65, which already floats as a long-cruise version and is just as wide at the stern as the 72. Cantiere del Pardo, the parent company of Grand Soleil and the motor brands Pardo Yachts and Van-Dutch, has found a new main shareholder in the Calzedonia Group since this year. The company, built up by Sandro Veronesi, specialises in hosiery, underwear and swimwear. Founded in 1973, the Pardo shipyard most recently received a cash injection from the Italian private equity company Wise Equity in 2020. With the Grand Soleil 72, the sailing division is broadly and optimally positioned.
Technical data of the Grand Soleil 72
- Overall length: 23.75 m
- Length (waterline): 19.84 m
- Width: 6.20 m
- Draught: 3.70 m
- Displacement: 31 tonnes
- Ballast: 9 tonnes
- Material: GRP, carbon-reinforced
- Motor: 1x 110 kW
- Sail area: 327 m²
- Fuel: 1,000 litres
- Water: 1,000 litres
- Navigation: B&G
- Construction: Matteo Polli
- Exterior design: Nauta Design
- Interior design: Nauta Design
- Class: CE "A"
- Shipyard: Cantiere del Pardo, 2022
- Dealer: Diamond Yachts, Laboe
